- Yelling FIREHOSE FRIDAY in a Crowded Annual Fundraiser
Hey, everyone …
THANK YOU to subscribing contributors WSS3, MM, and ES, and to long-time supporters RB and SZ! Their contributions yesterday, totaling $170, bring our annual fundraiser total (as of 5am) to $925.50!
That gets us to 1/3 of our goal (once we’ve raised $2,751.50, supporter GL will “match funds” to make it $5,503) … and once we reach that goal, I’ll stop hectoring you about money completely for the rest of the year, and almost completely until next October. So:
PLEASE SUPPORT THE FREEDOM MOVEMENT’S DAILY NEWSPAPER!
We don’t do FIREHOSE FRIDAYS very often these days, in part because we now include extra web-only content, above and beyond our 60-item email digest, EVERY day, but it’s worth turning on the water every once in a while both to call attention to how much content we’re collecting for you and to drag you over to the web edition where you might …
SUPPORT THE FREEDOM MOVEMENT’S DAILY NEWSPAPER!
… and today we’ve got more than 100 news stories, opinion pieces, and audio video links lined up for you at the web site.
Since the firehose is already on at both the content and fundraising ends, let’s keep it on over the weekend — our “mini-goal” is to hit the $1,500 mark by 5am on Monday. I’ve already given you that URL in big letters twice above.
Have a happy, healthy, and prosperous weekend!
Yours in liberty,
Tom Knapp
Publisher
Rational Review News Digest / Freedom News Daily - Yemen: Houthi attack on Aden palace allegedly kills five
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
“Five people have been killed and 16 injured in a Houthi missile attack targeting the presidential palace in the port city of Aden in southern Yemen, which is the seat of the [Saudi puppet regime], officials say. Information Minister Moammar al-Eryani told the BBC that the prime minister and other ministers were unhurt when five ballistic missiles hit al-Maashiq Palace. The Houthis’ military spokesman, Yahya Sarea, said they struck ‘the Saudi enemy’s military operations headquarters in Aden’.” (10/15/26)
- Trump Donor Sues Kimberly Guilfoyle For Defamation
Source: Forbes
“A Trump donor who Kimberly Guilfoyle allegedly asked to wire her $100,000 has sued the former ambassador to Greece, alleging she defamed him when she disputed the allegations against her. Eric Deters, a talk radio host, former lawyer and unsuccessful Republican candidate for Kentucky governor and a House seat, said he sued Guilfoyle over her statements to the Wall Street Journal after the newspaper published messages that appear to show the former ambassador asking him to wire $100,000 to her American Express account. … Deters said he planned to depose Guilfoyle and Donald Trump Jr., the president’s eldest son who was engaged to Guilfoyle for years, claiming the case ‘might bring down the entire Trump administration, an administration I have supported since Day 1.'” (10/15/26)
- Ukraine Resumes Attacks on Russian Oil Refineries, Officials Say, as US Relations Teeter
Source: Military.com
“Ukrainian drones attacked a refinery in Russia’s Ryazan region early Thursday, hours after Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy said that a brief truce spurned by Moscow was over amid deepening tensions with Washington. The drone strike started a fire at the refinery about 300 kilometers (180 miles) southeast of Moscow, Russia’s Defense Ministry and Ryazan Gov. Pavel Malkov said. Russia’s Astra online news outlet posted what it said was a photograph of the blaze. A senior Ukrainian official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to speak publicly, confirmed that Ukraine had hit the refinery. … Three people were killed and six others injured after the Kirovohrad region of central Ukraine came under a Russian drone attack lasting more than 10 hours, Ukraine’s Emergency Services said Thursday.” (10/15/26)
- Trump cancels Hegseth’s planned livestream killing show
Source: The Hill
“President Trump on Wednesday said he was canceling the livestream of the [killing] of Nidal Malik Hasan, the former U.S. Army major who killed 13 people in the 2009 attack on Fort Hood. Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth had said the [killing] would be livestreamed, a decision that had come under substantial criticism, including from GOP senators who said it would bring the U.S. to the level of terrorist groups who broadcast [killings]. Trump in his statement said he had heard that criticism, and he said that while Hasan deserved to be [killed], it would not be livestreamed. He also argued the livestream might have deterred terrorists.” (10/15/26)
https://thehill.com/homenews/administration/6150675-hasan-execution-not-livestreamed
- Occupied Ireland: Former quisling party leader sentenced for sexually abusing girls
Source: Politico
“The former leader of [British-occupied] Ireland’s main pro-British party, Jeffrey Donaldson, received a 15-year prison sentence Thursday for sexually abusing two schoolgirls. Donaldson, 63, kept his hands clasped together but offered no visible reaction as Judge Paul Ramsey said the former Democratic Unionist Party leader must serve an 11-year sentence for raping one girl and a further 4-year term for sexually abusing another. … Donaldson was an MP representing Lagan Valley from 1997 to 2024, first for the moderate Ulster Unionist Party and then — after belatedly breaking with the party over its support for the Good Friday peace accord of 1998 — as a member of the hard-line DUP. Donaldson became DUP leader in 2021, when he oversaw the collapse of [occupied] Ireland’s power-sharing government in a bitter dispute over the region’s peculiar post-Brexit trade rules.” (10/15/26)
- Secret documents reveal donors behind $330 million for Trump’s ballroom
Source: Washington Post
“A list obtained by The Washington Post reveals all the major donors to President Donald Trump’s White House ballroom project, including previously undisclosed contributors who have benefited from regulatory decisions, government contracts and, in one case, a pardon for a family member. Tech giants Nvidia and Apple each committed $25 million, the top contribution amount, the list shows. The Adelson family, one of the GOP’s largest donor dynasties, committed that sum as well, as did billionaire Charles Ergen, co-founder and chairman of telecommunications company Dish Network. Absent from the list is Trump himself, who has said that he is helping to pay for the project.” (10/15/26)
- Rare computer signed by Steve Wozniak, with Steve Jobs letter, sells for $1.15M
Source: SFGate
“After a 28-minute-long bidding war, a fully functional ‘Hatfield’ Apple-1 computer sold at Bonhams for $1.15 million on Oct. 14, setting a new world auction record for commercially released Apple-1 computers, the institution said in a recent news release. The primitive personal computer, which was created by engineer Steve Wozniak in 1976, includes a signed letter from Steve Jobs, the original operations manual and a typed invitation to the ‘Apple I Owners Club,’ as well as several hardware components. Perhaps most importantly, Wozniak’s signature is on the motherboard, which still operates 50 years later. Born in San Jose in 1950, Wozniak met Steve Jobs when they were still mischievous teenagers hacking into public telephone networks. Together, they collaborated on the Apple-1 and brought it to the Homebrew Computer Club, a group of hobbyists who gathered in Menlo Park to exchange ideas about personal computing, which was still a novel concept in the mid-1970s.” (10/15/26)
https://www.sfgate.com/bayarea/article/rare-apple-computer-sale-22478843.php
- NY: Maduro pleads not guilty to new torture-related charges
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
“Venezuela’s former leader Nicolás Maduro and his wife, Cilia Flores, appeared in court on Thursday to plead not guilty to new charges of conspiracy to commit torture. The US government initially accused Maduro of narco-terrorism, drug trafficking and weapons-related offenses, before adding new charges against him and Flores last week. Maduro and Flores were captured in January during a US military raid, after which they were taken to New York, where they remain in jail. The couple has pleaded not guilty to the allegations and both have argued to have the case thrown out on the grounds that they qualify for sovereign immunity. Their trial is scheduled for June 2027. In a new indictment last week, government prosecutors alleged Maduro and Flores ‘created and maintained a violent system of repression’ that saw ‘thousands of Venezuelans’ killed, harassed, and tortured.” (10/15/26)
- US regime sues California in fight over federal elections takeover
Source: CNBC
“The federal government sued the state of California on Thursday in an escalating battle over how to prevent non-U.S. citizens from voting by mail in federal elections. The lawsuit is the latest action by the Department of Justice targeting state administration of elections, which President Donald Trump has often criticized as susceptible to fraud and voting by noncitizens. The civil complaint, which the DOJ had threatened to file, asks a judge to prevent California officials from tabulating mail-in ballots ‘from likely non-citizens in the upcoming federal election until the voter’s citizenship status can be determined.’ The Department of Justice asks that a judge order the state to set aside mail ballots from voters ‘identified by the Federal Government likely to be noncitizens,’ and to verify their citizenship status before their ballot is counted.” (10/15/26)
https://www.cnbc.com/2026/10/15/california-mail-ballots-voting-lawsuit.html
- MN: Somali-Americans unleash fury on Trump after feds raid Ilhan Omar’s DC home
Source: Fox News
“Members of Minnesota’s growing Somali community, including a city council member, tore into President Donald Trump and his administration when speaking with Fox News Digital after Monday’s raid on Rep. Ilhan Omar’s Washington, D.C., residence. ‘Somalis — we all feel attacked by President Trump,’ Jamal Osman, the Somali-born vice president of the Minneapolis City Council, said of the impact of the raid carried out by Homeland Security Investigations (HSI) agents. ‘Our president has broken the law many times. ICE [is] terrorizing our community … and we’re not surprised such action has taken place,’ Osman continued in reference to the search of Omar’s home. ‘We have seen the threats, the horrific language he uses against my community. It’s unacceptable, and we’re hoping this could stop,’ Osman said.” [editor’s note: The investigation began during Biden regime, was approved by an Obama-appointed judge; we are in the “FO” portion now – SAT] [additional editor’s note: No, definitely in the “FA” portion, big-time – TLK] (10/15/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/politics/somalis-minnesota-unleash-fury-trump-feds-raid-ilhan-omar-dc-home
- US weekly jobless claims inch up to 199,000
Source: Yahoo! Finance
“A report released by the US Labor Department on Thursday showed first-time claims for US unemployment benefits edged slightly higher in the week ended October 10th. The Labor Department said initial jobless claims ticked up to 199,000, an increase of 1,000 from the previous week’s revised level of 198,000.” (10/15/26)
https://finance.yahoo.com/economy/articles/us-weekly-jobless-claims-inch-130331899.html
- UK: Man killed by tiger climbed two fences, died from “multiple injuries”
Source: BBC News [UK state media]
“A man who was attacked by a tiger after climbing two fences to enter its enclosure at a wildlife park died of ‘multiple traumatic injuries’, an inquest has heard. William Chapman visited Yorkshire Wildlife Park near Doncaster on Saturday and entered the animal’s pen. The 24-year-old was pronounced dead at the scene and died of ‘multiple traumatic injuries and animal interaction’, the opening of his inquest at Doncaster Coroner’s Court heard. Senior coroner Nicola Mundy said he had a history of mental illness, a diagnosis of schizophrenia and had suffered previous bouts of psychosis. His family had raised concerns about his contact with Rotherham, Doncaster and South Humber NHS Trust, the hearing was told. Chapman was under adult mental health services in Doncaster but was ‘highly functioning and independent with no care requirements’, the inquest heard.” (10/15/26)
- UK: Publisher, author bend the knee to regime censorship
Source: Associated Press
“British booksellers are caught up in a battle over terrorism and free speech after Irish novelist Sally Rooney said her books can no longer be sold in the U.K. because she financially supports the banned group Palestine Action. … The [regime’s] ban makes membership in or support for Palestine Action a crime punishable by up to 14 years in prison. … After the U.K. banned Palestine Action in July 2025, Rooney said she would use proceeds from her books and their TV adaptations to support the group. On Wednesday her U.K. publisher, Faber, said that paying her royalties could violate the terror ban and it had ‘taken the decision that we can no longer supply her works in the U.K. in any format.’ It said the decision had been made with Rooney’s agreement.” (10/15/26)
- Microsoft’s president warns White House against skilled immigration crackdown
Source: Politico
“Microsoft vice chair and president Brad Smith delivered a broadside Wednesday against President Donald Trump’s push to block the path to permanent residency for highly-skilled immigrants, warning the White House that its plan could cripple the U.S. tech sector for over a generation. In an exclusive interview with Decoded by POLITICO, Microsoft’s informal No. 2 suggested it was ironic that the White House chose to target his company’s foreign workers on the same day it gave a medal to Microsoft CEO Satya Nadella, a former H-1B skilled visa holder from India. ‘We should consider the fact that when the president honored six Americans with these technology and science medals, five of the six had come to the United States as immigrants,’ Smith told Decoded on the sidelines of the International AI Summit in Dublin, Ireland.” (10/15/26)
- North Korea and China Open Their Biggest Border Bridge
Source: New York Times
‘North Korea and China on Thursday opened the New Yalu River Bridge, the largest border crossing between the two countries, a sign of growing trade despite international sanctions aimed at constraining North Korea’s economy and nuclear weapons program. In the weeks leading up to the opening ceremony, travelers returning from the river border reported that trucks and cars were already crossing the four-lane, nearly two-mile long bridge from China into North Korea. The bridge connects the Chinese city of Dandong to Sinuiju, a North Korean city on the Yalu River that forms much of the border between the two countries. Its opening, which was reported by the Chinese state media, comes just a month after North Korea and Russia inaugurated their first — and much smaller — road bridge across the Tumen River border.” (10/15/26)
- Musk denies SpaceX restricted Starlink in Ukraine, blames US regime
Source: United Press International
“SpaceX CEO Elon Musk dismissed claims his company had restricted connectivity speeds of its Starlink services in Ukraine that the military there said had thrown a wrench into its operations, saying the Trump administration was the likely culprit behind any service disruption. Writing on X on Wednesday, Musk said the system supplied to the Ukraine Armed Forces was a military-grade version of the satellite high-speed internet service over which SpaceX had no control. ‘Starshield systems are owned and controlled by the U.S. Government. Any limits on speeds or usage are decided by the U.S. military and ultimately POTUS [the President of the United States].’ … Musk’s comments came after advisers to Zelensky said that on Tuesday evening connectivity aboard Starlink-equipped UAVs suddenly started being strangled when they exceeded 100 mph, prompting officials to ask Musk to remove any restrictions.” (10/15/26)
- Hezbollah admits seized explosives shipment is its own, demands return
Source: The New Arab [UK]
“Hezbollah has admitted ownership of a massive explosives shipment seized by Lebanese security forces, insisting the materials were intended for use against Israel while openly rejecting a government ban on its military activities. Hezbollah MP Hassan Fadlallah confirmed on Thursday that the vehicle and its cargo belonged to the group, demanding the immediate release of two detained men and the return of the confiscated explosives. The admission marks a significant escalation in the confrontation between Hezbollah and the Lebanese government, which has launched an investigation into the shipment amid fears that the materials could be used in political assassinations.” (10/15/26)
https://www.newarab.com/news/hezbollah-says-seized-explosives-were-fighting-israel
- US Treasury Pushes Global Partners to Rename AI as ‘Super Intelligence’
Source: US News & World Report
“The United States wants its global partners to rename artificial intelligence as ‘super intelligence,’ convinced that the new moniker better reflects the emerging technology, a top US Treasury official told Reuters in an interview on Thursday. Treasury Undersecretary for International Affairs Erin Browne said Washington was in negotiations with other shareholders of the International Monetary Fund about using the new term in a statement being drafted by the fund’s steering committee, the International Monetary and Financial Committee. US President Donald Trump last month directed US government agencies to use the words ‘super intelligence’ instead of ‘artificial intelligence’ when referring to the technology. Browne said the United States, which holds the rotating presidency of the Group of 20 major economies, wanted the change to take hold internationally as well.” [editor’s note: Based on this nonsense, I have to believe that “Treasury Undersecretary for International Affairs” is a vestigial position with no plausible case for retention – TLK] (10/15/260
- TX: Glitch Delays 600,000 Voter Registrations as Early Voting Looms
Source: New York Times
“A computer error caused a backlog of hundreds of thousands of voter registrations in Texas, sending election workers scrambling to process them before early voting starts on Monday, county election officials said. The backlog of nearly 600,000 applications stemmed from a glitch in software run by the Texas Department of Public Safety, according to a lawsuit filed last week by voting rights groups. They accused the agency, as well as the secretary of state, who serves as Texas’ chief election officer, of failing to to maintain a reliable online voter registration system. … The backlog appeared to have been mostly cleared by Wednesday, according to county election officials, several of whom said there was little risk that Texans who tried to register would be unable to vote. But some voting advocates said they worried that the episode might discourage voters from turning out at all.” (10/15/26)
- The Tariff Debate Is Using the Wrong Scorecard
Source: Cato Institute
by Jai Kedia and Norbert J Michel“Tariffs would be bad policy even if they had hit every one of their stated targets because those targets are not measures of economic welfare. That they have missed those targets anyway only makes the verdict against tariffs even harsher. Congress, which holds the constitutional power to set tariffs, should stop grading them on inflation prints, factory payrolls, and the trade balance. There is no world where increasing taxes, restricting trade, and pushing people into jobs that wouldn’t otherwise exist will increase Americans’ living standards.” (10/15/26)
https://www.cato.org/blog/tariff-debate-using-wrong-scorecard
- The Media Credentials Cops Come for Katie Zacharia
Source: Garrison Center
by Thomas L Knapp“While tooling down the freeway one day, you’re pulled over by a cop and it comes to light that you don’t possess a government-issued ‘driver’s license.’ Does that mean you aren’t a ‘driver?’ ‘Admission to the bar’ and other occupational licensing schemes don’t exist to distinguish ‘real’ lawyers, doctors, and even (in some states) hair braiders and interior decorators from ‘fake’ ones. Nor do they exist to ‘protect the public’ from less qualified practitioners. They exist to raise the incomes of people who procure those Extra Special, Very Important Permission Slips and to make it more expensive and difficult to competitively join those anointed elites. Which is why the strongest lobbying for implementing and enforcing such schemes always comes from the existing practitioners. If you ‘practice law,’ you’re a ‘lawyer’ or ‘attorney,’ whether you have government credentials saying so or not.” (10/15/26)
- The Evil Within, Part 5: Immigration Controls
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger“During my entire life, there have been crises and chaos along the U.S.-Mexico border. That’s because of America’s immigration-control program, which has been in existence for more than 100 years. This program is based on the socialist principle of central planning, whereby government officials centrally plan the movements of millions of people who seek entry into the United States. Rather than rely on free-market principles, including the law of supply and demand, the central planners determine how many total immigrants will be permitted to enter the country over the course of each year, how many will be allocated to different countries, and what their credentials will be. It simply cannot be done, at least not without continuous, never-ending chaos and crisis.” (10/15/26)
https://www.fff.org/explore-freedom/article/the-evil-within-part-5-immigration-controls/
- The Federal Government Collected $5.4 Trillion. It Still Can’t Pay Its Bills.
Source: Reason
by Veronique de Rugy“The federal government just closed fiscal year 2026 with a deficit of nearly $2 trillion, according to figures the Congressional Budget Office (CBO) released last Thursday. Only the two pandemic years of 2020 and 2021 were worse. Today, though, there is no recession and no emergency. These enormous budget deficits are the new normal. The usual response to a deficit warning is that the government just needs more money. It doesn’t. Thanks to the remarkable strength of the private sector, federal revenue rose by 3 percent, to more than $5.4 trillion, over the fiscal year. But spending rose by 6 percent, reaching $7.4 trillion.” (10/15/26)
- A Culture of Death
Source: Antiwar.com
by Andrew P Napolitano“A government that claims the authority to kill persons after they have been subdued, disarmed, tried, convicted and confined in prison has made a startling claim about the nature of political power. It claims not merely the authority to protect the innocent from violence, but the authority to inflict violence when no immediate threat exists. It claims that the taking of human life, which it rightly condemns when committed by private individuals, somehow becomes morally permissible when committed by government agents. This is the fundamental contradiction of the death penalty: Government killing the helpless protects the living. The Declaration of Independence offers a radically different understanding of government.” (10/15/26)
https://original.antiwar.com/andrew-p-napolitano/2026/10/14/a-culture-of-death
- The Same Old, Same Old European Runaround
Source: American Greatness
by Victor Davis Hanson“Nearly every week, another psychodrama arises between the United States and its NATO partners. Europeans blame the Trump administration for the usual things—a lack of cordiality and bombastic threats. But two truths, rarely spoken, characterize all these spats. One is hypocrisy; the other is insecurity. Take Trump’s recent demand that Ukraine cease attacks on Russian diesel refineries. Given the midterms and the critical issue of fuel prices, it was understandable that Trump might request an energy ‘ceasefire’. So both Russia and Ukraine were asked to stop their attacks on refineries to calm jittery global diesel markets and help stabilize sky-high prices. But the American Left, the Ukrainians, and the Europeans went ballistic – given that the aggressor, Russia, is blanketing Ukrainian skies with missiles and drones, while Russia’s critical refining industry remains vulnerable to retaliatory Ukrainian drone attacks.” (10/15/26)
https://amgreatness.com/2026/10/15/the-same-old-same-old-european-runaround/
- Why the Battle of Ideas matters in our age of censorship
Source: spiked
by Claire Fox“Everyone claims to believe in free speech – until someone says something they dislike. That produces a censorious tit-for-tat cancel culture, not just on the left but increasingly on the right. Instead, we must uphold free speech as a principle for all. And we need to start exercising our free-speech muscles that risk atrophying in an era of progressive censorship. That is why the Battle of Ideas, the original free-speech festival, matters.” (10/15/26)
https://www.spiked-online.com/2026/10/15/why-the-battle-of-ideas-matters-in-our-age-of-censorship/
- Can the States again become a confederation?
Source: The Price of Liberty
by Nathan Barton“Would it be possible, given the growing divide between the Red and Blue States from coast to coast, to go back more than 200 years, and come up with a new version of the Articles of Confederation? That was, after all, what the men in Philadelphia were supposed to do. Not replace the Articles with a ‘Constitution’ but improve them. Address the issues that were keeping things in an uproar? Today, we find that in the last 237 years, we’ve come up with a lot of ideas, techniques, that would let us address those issues while still restoring the full sovereignty that the 12 States had.” (10/15/26)
https://thepriceofliberty.org/2026/10/15/can-the-states-again-become-a-confederation/
- Why California Can’t Build Reliable and Affordable Essential Projects
Source: Independent Institute
by Jennifer Hernandez & Kristian Fors“This report analyzes 498 appellate court decisions involving the California Environmental Quality Act (CEQA) from 2013 to 2023, finding that housing remains the leading target of CEQA litigation. It explores how CEQA has become a major obstacle to development in California and how various interest groups exploit the law to obstruct projects. It also offers recommendations for reform aimed at removing barriers to development, encouraging economic growth, and promoting greater prosperity in the Golden State.” (10/15/26)
- The backlash against livestreaming an execution
Source: Christian Science Monitor
by staff“Executions open to the public, once a popular spectacle in early America, began to lose whatever moral purpose they once had nearly two centuries ago. The last legally sanctioned public execution in the United States was in 1936. And, as a sign of how sentiments have shifted, a monument was erected in Massachusetts just nine years ago to mark the site of the most famous public hangings: 19 people accused of witchcraft in 1692 Salem. This week, three TV news networks reported that the Trump White House is leaning against a plan by the Pentagon to livestream an execution – by firing squad on Dec. 3 – of an ex-Army major convicted of killing 13 people at a Texas military facility in 2009. Not only has airing such an official and gruesome act ignited bipartisan backlash in Congress, but House Speaker Mike Johnson and Vice President JD Vance also say they would not watch the broadcast.” (10/14/26)
- This Stage of Democratic Socialism
Source: Common Sense
by Paul Jacob“China is not run as a centrally planned economy. It’s run like a fascist state, with party members working within businesses, only occasionally taking full control and ousting (even executing) owners and entrepreneurs and ‘uncooperative’ managers … when the State requires. Just as did the National Socialist Party during Germany’s ‘Third Reich’ period. As Peter Drucker sagely noticed, ‘Fascism is the stage reached after communism has proved an illusion.'” (10/15/26)
https://thisiscommonsense.org/2026/10/15/this-stage-of-democratic-socialism/
- Trump Keeps Coming Up With Legally Dubious Tariff Justifications
Source: Reason
by Jacob Sullum“Shortly after taking office in 2025, Trump claimed to have discovered a previously unnoticed delegation of extensive tariff authority in the International Emergency Economic Powers Act (IEEPA), a 1977 law that does not mention import taxes and had never been used to impose them. That claim was rejected by every court that considered it. Last February, the Supreme Court ruled that IEEPA does not authorize tariffs at all. But Trump had a backup plan: Hours after that decision, he announced another sweeping set of tariffs, this time relying on Section 122 of the Trade Act of 1974. In May, the U.S. Court of International Trade (CIT) ruled that the new tariffs were illegal …. Trump then switched to Plan C, invoking Section 301 of the Trade Act …” (10/15/26)
https://reason.com/2026/10/15/a-third-round-of-legally-dubious-tariffs/
- “Resistance Preaching”: The Democrats Find God in Politics
Source: Jonathan Turley
by Jonathan Turley“Across the country, a curious trend is taking hold in the Democratic Party: The left has found God in politics. As Politico noted most recently, Democrats are running for Congress by leaning on their Christian bona fides. Democrats hope they have found the key to political salvation in states like Texas. However, as Democratic candidates like Texas senatorial candidate James Talarico campaign on their religious credentials, the result has been to insert faith into the broader political debate, which now includes questions ranging from the gender of God to whether Christians have to believe that Jesus actually existed. The rival views on Christianity by Talarico and his Republican opponent for the U.S. Senate, Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, are now being debated by voters. Republicans have long emphasized faith-based politics, and the new Democratic shift has created arguably the most religious-themed election season in modern history.” (10/15/26)
https://jonathanturley.org/2026/10/15/resistance-preaching-the-democrats-find-god-in-politics/
- Civic Education and Classical Liberalism
Source: Law & Liberty
by Max Skjönsberg“Civics centers, teaching civic and classical education through ‘Western civ’ and great books, are often described as conservative enterprises. In a strong sense, this is manifestly false, because they are, at least in my personal experience, entirely free from political litmus tests. Yet there is a sense in which there is an essential ‘small-c’ conservative element to civic and classical education, as there must be in all liberal learning (the appropriate term for such education). As Michael Oakeshott once put it, ‘Every human being is born as an heir to an inheritance to which he can succeed only in a process of learning.'” (10/15/26)
https://lawliberty.org/civic-education-and-classical-liberalism/
- Why Kentucky’s Social Studies Draft Standards Fall Short
Source: Bluegrass Institute
by Richard G Innes“While the proposed Kentucky Academic Standards for Social Studies dated August 2026 (hereafter the ‘proposed standards’) contain some improvements over the December 2022 standards currently in use, many major problems remain.” (10/15/26)
https://www.bluegrassinstitute.org/social-studies-draft-standards/
- Fossilflation is a permanent risk to the US
Source: Semafor
by Tim McDonnell“Fossil fuels are an economic liability, and not just because of the war in Iran. Rising energy costs were a major driver of the hotter-than-expected US inflation figures reported yesterday. This fact won’t surprise anyone reading this newsletter. Still, the numbers are pretty astonishing: Behind an overall gain of 3.7% across all goods and services in the past 12 months, gasoline prices are up 34.2%, and fuel oil prices (relevant mostly for home heating) are up 74.2%. The proximal cause is the war, of course, and the figures cement that US President Donald Trump has by now run out of time to change the picture ahead of the midterm election. But the broader takeaway here is that the inherent volatility of oil and gas prices is a persistent vulnerability in the US economy that can only be solved by limiting exposure to these energy sources.” (10/15/26)
https://www.semafor.com/article/10/15/2026/fossilflation-is-a-permanent-risk-to-the-us
- Tech Plutocrats Will Not Lead Us Into A Healthy Future
Source: Caitlin Johnstone, Rogue Journalist
by Caitlin Johnstone“It says so much about how diseased our society has become that the most revered and respected among us are emotionally stunted man-babies who have used monopolistic thuggishness and trickery to become billionaires. Bezos. Musk. Thiel. Altman. Ellison. These neurotic freaks have no redeeming characteristics and nothing going for them as people beyond a knack for extracting wealth from the working class, and yet they’re the ones calling the shots for the trajectory our species is going to follow into the future. They’re the ones making headlines and receiving groveling softball interviews from sycophantic reporters and podcasters. They’re the ones our warped civilization points to as role models we should all strive to be like. These men are not wise. They don’t know how to live happy lives. They are ideologically opposed to providing for the common good of everyone.” (10/15/26)
- Rethinking Louisiana’s Building Code
Source: Foundation for Economic Education
by Isabella Albano“Home is where the heart is, and for many Louisianans, owning a house is an important part of the American dream. But as home prices have climbed to record heights, homeownership is becoming less attainable for many. Building codes are a significant contributor to this affordability problem.” (10/15/26)
https://fee.org/articles/rethinking-louisianas-building-code/
- St. Louis Residents Should Think Twice Before Supporting New Charitable Taxes
Source: Show-Me Institute
by David Stokes“Everyone wants to help kids and senior citizens, right? Who could oppose a new sales tax in the City of St. Louis to fund early childhood education and daycare? And who could be against a new property tax in St. Louis County for services designed to help seniors stay in their homes? Well, I could. Politicizing charity and mandating it through law is dangerous. St. Louisans would be wise to think twice before going down this road.” (10/15/26)
- A new report just busted another myth about heat pumps
Source: Grist
by Matt Simon“You may have heard by now that heat pumps — which transfer warmth from outdoor air to an indoor space, instead of generating it like a furnace — don’t work when it gets really cold out. That’s incorrect, as models designed for frigid climes can keep you toasty even in the dead of winter. Don’t believe me? Look no further than the Nordic countries, which have fully committed to them despite the region’s not-exactly-balmy winters. OK, so heat pumps are more efficient than ever, which is why Americans seem to be warming up to the appliances. But surely, since they’re electric, switching to them en masse will push the grid to collapse? That’s also false.” (10/15/26)
https://grist.org/solutions/a-new-report-just-busted-another-myth-about-heat-pumps/
- What’s at Stake in the Omar Case
Source: Unpopular Front
by John Ganz“One’s personal opinion of Omar’s character or her politics is immaterial. This is a serious assault on the constitutional order being carried out through the executive branch’s legal and bureaucratic machinery. Perhaps the reason that the public response is so tepid is that we have so long taken for granted—or simply no longer understand—just how fundamental the questions involved really are. This move strikes at some of the most elementary assumptions of a free and republican government, principles so basic that we scarcely imagined they would need defending: that political opposition is legitimate, that the executive cannot determine the composition of the legislature, and that citizenship is not a privilege held at the pleasure of those in power.” (10/15/26)
https://www.unpopularfront.news/p/whats-at-stake-in-the-omar-case
- AI vs. the railroads
Source: Noahpinion
by Noah Smith“A year and a half ago, the AI boom was still significantly smaller than the railroad boom of the late 1800s, as a percent of GDP. Now, there’s an active argument as to which one is bigger. This debate doesn’t really matter, because the basic message is just ‘Wow, it’s a lot of money.’ But it’s fun to look at the numbers people are throwing around.” (10/15/26)
- Licensure Is a Protection Racket for Lawyers
Source: Future of Freedom Foundation
by Jacob G Hornberger“To get a government-issued license to practice law, one generally has to pass a state bar examination. The California bar exam is one of the hardest in the country to pass. That ensures that fewer people are able to secure law licenses. The notion is that a state-issued law license protects the public from incompetent and unethical lawyers. How’s that working out? It seems to me that there are lots of incompetent and unethical lawyers in every state of the United States. Why did the state issued licenses to them to practice law? In actuality, difficult bar exams and licensure requirements are nothing more than a protection racket.” (10/15/26)
https://www.fff.org/2026/10/15/licensure-is-a-protection-racket-for-lawyers/
- El-Sayed’s own words reveal a radical plan to dismantle the Second Amendment
Source: Fox News
by JP Pichardo“‘What if we tweaked the Constitution, amended the Second Amendment, and instead of the right to bear arms, we change it to the right to have healthcare?’ That is not a college activist. That is Abdul El-Sayed, the Democratic nominee for United States Senate in Michigan, talking into his own camera, on his own channel. And it is one of many videos that he quietly made private from his channel once he decided he wanted a seat in the world’s most powerful legislative body. A U.S. Senate nominee from one of the two major national parties, who has a legitimate chance to win, actively floated the idea of replacing the Second Amendment — not merely regulating it, which would be bad enough. This is not your typical anti-gun Democrat rhetoric. This is a dangerous and new precedent coming from far-left Democrats.” (10/15/26)
https://www.foxnews.com/opinion/el-sayed-words-reveal-radical-plan-dismantle-second-amendment
- Progressive Buyer’s Remorse
Source: Law & Liberty
by Paul Moreno“The left is rediscovering century-old arguments for crippling the Supreme Court.” (10/15/26)
https://lawliberty.org/book-review/progressive-buyers-remorse/
- $90? Call me when Trump’s midterm voter bribes get better
Source: USA Today
by Rex Huppke“The bad news for Republicans is that the last inflation report before the midterm elections showed that overall prices in September were nearly 4% higher than the same time last year, and gas prices specifically surged 34%. The good news is that Republican candidates, whose operating philosophy seems to be ‘eating is overrated,’ have President Donald Trump on the midterms campaign trail offering voters all kinds of free things. … With just under three weeks to go until the Nov. 3 midterms, and with polling looking horrendous for Republicans, possibly because everything is terrible, I have a suggestion for my fellow opportunistic voters: Hold out! Better bribes are coming. I don’t need a pardon (that I know of), I don’t for a second believe Trump will give me $5,000 after the election (I wasn’t born yesterday), and $90 or $500 bribes are for rubes and desperate ne’er-do-wells.” (10/15/26)
- Free Enterprise Transformed the American South
Source: The Daily Economy
by Paul McDonnold“In the Old South, what had mattered was blood and land. It was a quasi-feudal society where it was difficult to rise above the station you inherited, nearly impossible if you were black. And when the tension created by slavery in a nation founded on freedom became untenable, the Civil War broke out, and the South was crushed. The Union’s victory owed at least as much to economic superiority as military proficiency. Though it took roughly a century, transforming the Southern economy required replacing its agrarian, slave-based order with a more modern, freer, more diversified system. In Houston, the transformation was spurred by the oil industry. In Charlotte, it was banking. And in northwest Arkansas, it was retail, with Walmart founder Sam Walton becoming the richest person in the United States in 1982.” (10/15/26)
https://thedailyeconomy.org/article/free-enterprise-transformed-the-american-south/
- Sino-American Relations In a Post-Summit World
Source: Libertarian Institute
by Joseph Solis-Mullen“When Xi Jinping departed Washington at the end of September, the verdict was already plain. Another carefully choreographed encounter produced a short extension of the trade truce, a modest $30 billion reciprocal tariff arrangement on non-sensitive goods, some coal purchases, an AI dialogue, and the familiar language of ‘constructive strategic stability.’ Ceremonial pomp, pandas, and mutual professions of personal friendship filled the space where real structural progress was absent. The outcome matched what I had advised readers to expect in the runup—namely, that the deeper frictions, technology controls, Taiwan, and Washington’s persistent urge to police Beijing’s commercial relationships, would remain unresolved. Having given things a chance to breathe, now is a good time to look at what has transpired since Xi and Trump’s meeting and to look to the road ahead.” (10/15/26)
https://libertarianinstitute.org/articles/sino-american-relations-in-a-post-summit-world/
- On Inflation, Trump Snatched Defeat from the Jaws of Victory
Source: Paul Krugman
by Paul Krugman“One of the great ironies of American politics is that Donald Trump won the 2024 election basically because a significant number of credulous voters believed his promises to bring prices down beginning on ‘day one.’ What actually happened was that America, along with the rest of the world, experienced a temporary surge in inflation in 2021-22, mainly because of the lingering effects of Covid disruptions. And voters still blamed Joe Biden for that surge. But by 2024 the war against inflation had been largely won, at startlingly low cost — the recession many analysts claimed would be necessary to get inflation down never happened, but inflation came way down anyway. And then Trump snatched defeat from the jaws of victory.” (10/15/26)
https://paulkrugman.substack.com/p/on-inflation-trump-snatched-defeat
- The War on Drug Trafficking as a Tool of US Domination in Central and South America
Source: CounterPunch
by Ariela Ruiz Caro“The framework of combating drug trafficking serves as the United States’[s] primary mechanism for geopolitical control in the region. The recently announced ‘Plan Patriota Siglo XXI’–in which De la Espriella asks the United States to fund technology, radar systems, and cyberdefense and announces the resumption of aerial spraying, with Rubio leaving open the possibility of establishing a joint military base in Colombia—or the delivery of coast guard vessels to Ecuador, are not acts of philanthropy, but rather part of a circular business model designed by and for the U.S. military-industrial complex. The U.S. industrial complex reaps economic profits at the very moment its commercial establishments—authorized to sell weapons to the public—supply the cartels.” (10/15/26)
- How Can Dems Persuade Wary Voters They Will Really End the Iran War?
Source: Common Dreams
by Jamal Abdi“The war on Iran—and the economic toll that President Donald Trump’s decision has taken on all aspects of Americans’ lives—is now the top issue on the campaign trail heading into November. Should Democrats take majorities in the House and Senate, they will have an unmistakable mandate to end the war. Yet many voters I talk to remain skeptical that a Democratic Congress would actually have the will and capability to stand up to Trump and force an end to the war. This is despite Rep. Hakeem Jeffries (NY), who hopes to be Speaker in a Democrat-led House, promising to end the war if they win. … If Democrats are serious about this promise, they should make a more ironclad commitment: A Democratic Congress will use its significant powers to deny any and all funding for continued US participation in this war.” (10/15/26)
- The Epistemic Corruption of Biomedical Science
Source: Brownstone Institute
by Josh Guetzkow“Health sciences today all too often function as a sophisticated propaganda system for pharmaceutical products, as the Covid‑19 vaccine rollout showed on an unprecedented scale. Since at least the 1980s, scientific institutions, journals, regulators, and mainstream news media have been gradually restructured to align knowledge production, communication, and censorship with corporate interests. This is an argument not against biomedical science but for a science of integrity, honesty, and humanity.” (10/15/26)
https://brownstone.org/articles/the-epistemic-corruption-of-biomedical-science/
- By pursuing a big ‘win’ in Iran, Trump is destined to lose
Source: Responsible Statecraft
by Paul R Pillar“Trump always has viewed the world as a zero-sum game. Whether the subject is military conflict, trade agreements, or real estate deals, he regards most outcomes as having a winner and a loser. He also never admits a mistake and certainly will not do so publicly regarding the current war. Thus the conflict continues as a search for something Trump can claim as a ‘win.'” (10/15/26)
- China According to China
Source: Liberal Currents
by Guillaume AW Attia“The Pax Sinica to which Xi Jinping aspires will be no imperialism-free paradise, but a world made safe for autocracy and domestic terror.” (10/15/26)
- How non-state alliances are reshaping the global order
Sourc: Asia Times
by John P Ruehl“From the Houthis to Mexican cartels, non-state actors are forging global networks that private-sector ties make hard to hamper.” (10/15/26)
https://asiatimes.com/2026/10/how-non-state-alliances-are-reshaping-the-global-order/
- The Moynihan Report, 10/15/26
Source: The Moynihan Report
“Simon Sebag Montefiore: You’re (Probably) Wrong About the Middle East.” (10/15/26)
https://www.themoynihan.report/p/simon-sebag-montefiore-youre-probably
- Nonzero, 10/15/26
Source: bloggingheads.tv
“The AI Companion Question | Robert Wright & Paul Bloom.” (10/15/26)
- Antiwar News with Dave DeCamp, 10/15/26
Source: Antiwar.com
“US Considers Using Mother of All Bombs in Iran, Ansar Allah Hits Aden Presidential Palace, and More.” (10/15/26)
- Ron Paul Liberty Report, 10/15/26
Source: Ron Paul Liberty Report
“Surprise! Blowing Up Boats Didn’t End ‘Narco-terrorism.'”
- Politics Politics Politics, 10/15/26
Source: Politics Politics Politics
“A Class-A Dirty Midterms Trick. The Story Behind ‘The Social Reckoning’ (with Karol Markowicz and Katie Harbath).” (10/15/26)
https://www.politicspoliticspolitics.com/p/a-class-a-dirty-midterms-trick-the
- Dave DeCamp on The Kyle Anzalone Show
Source: Libertarian Institute
“Will Trump Restart the War Against Iran Before the Midterm Elections?” (10/15/26)
- Political Theater, 10/15/26
Source: Roll Call
“How Sha Na Na could help determine the House majority.” (10/15/26)
https://chrt.fm/track/D3F8DG/traffic.megaphone.fm/FISCAL4695997832.mp3
- Checks & Balances, 10/13/26
Source: Checks & Balances
“AI Companies Don’t Get to Be Above the Law.” (10/15/26)
https://chkbal.substack.com/p/ai-companies-dont-get-to-be-above
- Politico Playbook Audio Briefing, 10/15/26
- Rising, 10/15/26
Source: The Hill
“Robby Soave gives his radar on a survey that shows Democrats have a net favorable view of socialism by 31 points.” (10/15/26)
- Liberal Currents Live, 10/15/26
Source: Liberal Currents
“Was it inevitable that bigotry would become so dominant within libertarianism, or could it all have gone differently?” (10/15/26)
https://www.liberalcurrents.com/liberal-currents-live-libertarianism-captured-by-racism/
- Declare Your Independence with Ernest Hancock, 10/15/26
Source: Freedom’s Phoenix
“Shari Brown (Harvard-Educated Mathematician; Religious Scholar) on her book Seven Commandments for Happiness and Prosperity: Where Spirituality and Science Merge.” (10/15/26)
- The Daily Blast With Greg Sargent, 10/15/26
Source: The New Republic
“Trump’s Boast about Rallies Backfires as Humiliating New GOP Leaks Hit.” (10/15/26)
https://newrepublic.com/article/216651/trump-boast-rallies-backfires-humiliating-new-gop-leaks-hit
- Advisory Opinions, 10/15/26
Source: The Dispatch
“The Secrecy in Courts Dilemma.” (10/15/26)
https://thedispatch.com/podcast/advisoryopinions/the-secrecy-in-courts-dilemma/
- Underthrow Podcast, 10/15/26
Source: Underthrow
“Civilization in Decline.” (10/15/26)
- System Update, 10/15/26
Source: System Update
“Saudi Arabia’s DISASTROUS, US-Backed War in Yemen Explained.” (10/15/26)
https://rumble.com/v7gvplq-saudi-arabias-disastrous-us-backed-war-in-yemen-explained.html
- The Blessings of Liberty with Jeffrey Rosen, 10/15/26
Source: The Blessings of Liberty with Jeffrey Rosen
“What did Madison, Washington, and Jefferson think about Religious Liberty?” (10/15/26)
https://rosenjeffrey.substack.com/p/what-did-madison-washington-and-jefferson
- Interviews by Claire Lehmann, 10/14/26
Source: Quillette
“Former Australian Treasurer Josh Frydenberg tells Claire Lehmann why he believes Bondi was preventable, and what Australia needs on antisemitism, tax and economic reform.” (10/14/26)
https://quillette.com/2026/10/14/josh-frydenberg-on-bondi-antisemitism-and-a-grateful-son/
- Kibbe on Liberty, episode 408
Source: Free the People
“The Radical Life of Thomas Sowell | Guest: Clifton Duncan.” (10/14/26)
- The Chris Hedges Report, 10/14/26
Source: The Chris Hedges Report
“How the Trump Admin. Is Expanding the Definition of ‘Terrorism’ — and What It Means (w/ Dan Boguslaw).” (10/14/26)
https://chrishedges.substack.com/p/how-the-trump-admin-is-expanding